AUT students show UK visa applicants the way

Students graduating from AUT University’s School of Communication Studies have devised a way to help improve the quality of visa applications from NZers planning to travel to the UK.

Earlier this year, the British High Commission ran a competition at AUT. The brief was to come up with a digital media guide to getting the basics right.

The winning team pitched a design concept and then used project management, 3D animation, graphic design and motion graphics skills to create a two minute video entitled Kiwi Takes The Big Trip, which recently went live on the British High Commission website.

The correct visa is crucial for many overseas trips, with over 10,000 NZers each year requiring visas to visit the UK.

Presenting the winning team with their award at the School of Communication Studies’ Digital Media Expo, Dr Mike Cherrett, Britain’s Deputy High Commissioner said: “If NZers are planning to stay in the UK for more than six months, they generally need a visa. There’s been plenty of good news this year for NZers, with the retention of ancestry visas and extension of the time OEers can work in UK to two years. And the UK’s new points based system is making things simpler for applicants.

“With all this change we want to help our customers get their applications right first time. We were improving our website and wanted to reinforce some basic guidance in a more accessible way.

“That’s where AUT came in. Kiwi Takes the Big Trip explains how important it is to ensure applicants provide proof of funds to support them in UK, supply original documents with their application and avoid booking travel until they’ve got their visa.

“We’re very happy with AUT’s product. The clip will be featured on our website (which receives over 25,000 visits a month) and we’re flagging it as ‘good practice’ around the UK Border Agency’s global network. I hope this project will be the start of successful careers for all of the team members; they’ve already put NZ on the map.”

The AUT team members are Iain Hamilton-Gates, Sophie Gallagher, Adam Kelway, Isaac Rankin and Yoshie Mori.

Kiwi Takes The Big Trip can be seen at: www.UkinNewZealand.fco.gov.uk